A mobile Bitcoin wallet is an app on your smartphone or tablet that carries your digital money. Portable Bitcoin wallets are useful if you are planning on using your digital money on a store, restaurant, or business that accepts it.
There are many advantages to having a mobile Bitcoin wallet. This includes the chance of depositing cash to an online gambling site like the best Bitcoin dice game websites even when you are outside your home. However, there are also risks in using the wallet on your smartphone.
Top mobile Bitcoin wallets 2017
- Mycelium – Mycelium uses advanced privacy and security measures. This wallet is also open source which allows anyone to add an upgrade to the wallet.
- Breadwallet – Breadwallet offers an easy-to-use interface. Since the wallet is open source, anyone can add certain improvements to the wallet.
- Copay – Copay uses a Multisig security feature. Any transactions from this wallet require several people before it gets approved.
- Airbitz – Much like Breadwallet, Airbitz has a user-friendly feature. The wallet is intended for beginners or people new to Bitcoin.
Advantages of using a mobile Bitcoin wallet
The biggest advantage that a mobile Bitcoin wallet has to offer is its portability. Unlike a software Bitcoin wallet that you use with your computer, the mobile wallet allows you to take your bitcoins with you wherever you go. This means you can purchase items or food in brick-and-mortar shops using Bitcoin through your smartphone or tablet. This is true since there are now shops that have a POS cashier which takes Bitcoin payment from mobile devices.
Another reason for carrying a mobile Bitcoin wallet is security. You are in control of the private key of your Bitcoin wallet at all times. This means that you have full control of your digital money. On the other hand, online wallets have your private keys. You only have the online wallet’s reputation that it will keep your private keys and Bitcoin safe.
Moreover, if you plan to play dice or casino games, a mobile Bitcoin wallet is a good way to deposit some credits to a Bitcoin dice site instead of an online wallet because of its security.
Risks of using a mobile Bitcoin wallet
One thing to worry about when using a mobile Bitcoin wallet is losing your phone or tablet. Losing it would also mean that you will be risking the bitcoins inside your wallet. The same applies when your phone breaks or when its system goes haywire.
Fortunately, most wallet app has a backup seed phrase which makes up about 12 to 24 words. Just use the words on the same app in a new phone or tablet. This will restore your private keys and your Bitcoin. It is important that you quickly use the backup seed phrase if you suspect that someone stole your phone. If the person can access your wallet, they can easily transfer the funds to another wallet which will make it virtually impossible to recover.
A good way to lower the risk is to put only a small portion of your bitcoins in the mobile wallet. The rest of your money should be in a cold storage or a hardware Bitcoin wallet. Basically, your mobile wallet should only have just the right amount of money that you want to wager on a Bitcoin dice website. If you happen to get a large payout, send it straight to your wallet program for safe keeping.
